ECOTON (or the rollercoaster of Surabaya)

By Marjolein van Rijn

From the first moment I arrive in Surabaya, I enter the rollercoaster called ECOTON. I'm visiting them to get to know the work of this long-time Both ENDS partner, and have only three days for this. But ECOTON does a lot, and all of it at the same time. Tirelessly, they work on the protection of the Brantas River.

That's why I suddenly find myself, with a jetlag and with my suitcase still in the car, in the burning sun on a bridge next to a couple of women and men in white suits who are fishing diapers from a river. They get a lot of attention from the traffic passing by, and that is exactly what they want.

The fight against diaper dumping

ECOTON is committed to stop people from Surabaya from throwing their children's diapers into the rivers. They do so because of the superstition that their children get sick when the diapers are being burned (with the rest of the waste). ECOTON is therefore trying to create awareness about the consequences of dumping diapers in nature: research has shown that the fish of the Brantas River change sex on a large scale because of the chemicals in the water. In addition, ECOTON pleads with local authorities for special containers for the diapers.

Sometimes this succeeds, but later at a meeting in the municipality of Sidoarjo the local environmental department is not enthusiastic at all. In this city, a group of women collects recyclable waste from their neighbors and sells it to a waste processing plant. These women also want diaper containers to be placed in their city. Unfortunately their wish is not fulfilled this time, but these women and ECOTON will continue the fight.

The fight against the factory in Lakardowo

The same applies to the women in Lakardowo. This week their long-awaited lawsuit against the local government starts, which has unrightfully extended the permit of the waste processing plant Pt. PRIA. This factory causes such a serious pollution of water, soil and crops that they'd better not be used anymore. In spite of this, the mayor has extended the permit on the basis of incorrect data, incomplete consultation with the community and the mandatory Environmental Impact Assessment has not yet been completed.

ECOTON has been preparing the case with this women's group for over a year. They learned about their rights, and in the meantime get more courage and self-confidence to stand up against injustice. The evening before the first session we meet them again for a final instruction and to make protest signs. The community has rented 4 buses to demonstrate with a large group in front of the courthouse the next day.

When I ask the women who will testify in court to tell their story in front of the camera, they do not hesitate and speak to me as if they were professional spokespersons. I'm confident that these women will make a strong impression in court. Let's hope that the judge withdraws the permit of the factory and recommends that the soil be cleaned up so that the women of Lakardowo can grow safe food for their families.

The fight for a clean Brantas, from spring to mouth

These are just two of ECOTON's many projects, many of which are supported by Both ENDS. They work with pupils and women in the source areas of the Brantas so that at least the origins of the river remain clean. With a simple but reliable method to measure water quality developed by ECOTON, pupils in Wonosalam draw up a report every quarter for the local government, while women from the village are committed to preserve a forest containing three springs of the river.

They measure the water quality around the drain pipes of factories that end up on the river. Because the government only measures during the day, many factories discharge their waste water in the evening. Which is why ECOTON researchers go out in the middle of the night to take water samples.

They catch fish and examine their stomach contents. They help communities to set up fish sanctuaries. They educate communities along the river on sustainable forest management. They teach at schools about the importance of clean rivers. And they do much more; I've only seen a fraction of their work in those few days.

Tireless guardians of the river

The ECOTON team is a group of tireless river defenders who, by using different tactics - education, advocacy, research, legal procedures and peaceful protest - can convince communities along the river as well as local authorities to take action.

So the least I can do as a communications officer is get on board of their rollercoaster and record their work. To inspire others to support, replicate, and applaud the work of ECOTON - and many other Both ENDS partners around the world. Because these people are heroes who deserve an applause!

A protected nature reserve, better waste processing, restricted mining and participation of local residents in water management: these are the results of eight years of working on a Negotiated Approach to integrated water management in five river basins in Indonesia.

Good news from Brazil! The National Water Agency (ANA) has stopped issuing new permits for the construction of hydroelectric dams in the Brazilian Paraguay river basin, which is part of the Pantanal wetlands in South-America. The suspension will last at least until May 2020, after the publication of a comprehensive socio-economic and environmental impact assessment that the ANA started in 2016.

The Indonesia Water Community of Practice (IndoWater CoP) was declared on December 3, 2014 by a group of Indonesian NGOs whose members felt very concerned about the poor management of Indonesia's water resources due to a lack of integrated planning on river basin management, community participation and law enforcement.

Indonesia has many rivers, but clean water is increasingly scarce. To address the Indonesian water crisis, Both ENDS and 3 Indonesian civil society organisations initiated IndoWater Community of Practice. IndoWaterCoP is born out of concern that the implementation of Indonesian water resource management is failing. It aims to assist Indonesian government to improve its performance.

In this short movie we follow Indian professor Vijay Paranjpye, who has dedicated his life and work to finding ways of involving local communities in the management of natural resources such as water. What is the Negotiated Approach and what has been achieved so far? This film takes us to India and to Benin to show both results and possibilities.

In and around the rapidly growing cities of the Ganges Delta in India and Bangladesh, there is a serious threat of groundwater shortages. The Negotiated Approach is intended to offer a fair and sustainable solution.

In 2016, the state forest around the community of Kasepuhan Karang, in Java, Indonesia, was transformed into customary lands. With these newly acquired land tenure rights, the community has started initiatives to use their land in a sustainable and inclusive way. What this means for the community in terms of livelihoods and food security, became clear during a field visit at the start of the Global Land Forum 2018.

Large-scale infrastructural projects have detrimental effects on local people and the environment, while their benefits are felt elsewhere. Both ENDS is working to ensure that local people have a greater say in decision-making and is investigating the way these projects are funded.

10 songs: that is the result of a 4 day long, 450 km boat trip through the Pantanal with 36 people. The project Pantanal Poética sought and found a new way to look at the Pantanal, a valuable but threatened nature reserve on the border of Brazil, Bolivia and Paraguay.

Pak Japin is a quiet, slim, and softly-spoken man from the village of Silat Hulu, West Kalimantan, Indonesia. I met him at a recent documentary screening in Bali on the fringe of the Round Table for Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) annual conference, where he spoke about his community's nine year-long conflict with palm oil company Golden Agri Resources Ltd (GAR).

Between 2010 and 2013, Both ENDS, within an alliance of Indonesian and Dutch organisations and universities, conducted a pilot project to improve the spatial planning in the district of Sanggau in West-Kalimantan, on the island of Borneo, Indonesia, to help local communities with the recognition of their land rights. We can show you a beautiful documentary about one of the villages in this district, Terusan.

On June 5th, World Environment Day, community members at the southern coast of Guatemala protested against the rapid spread of large-scale palm oil, sugar cane and banana plantations in their region. Utz Che', our local partner organisation, joined the march.

Our mission

Together with environmental justice groups from the Global South, Both ENDS works towards a sustainable, fair and inclusive world. We gather and share information about policy and investments that have a direct impact on people and their livelihood, we engage in joint advocacy, we stimulate the dialogue between stakeholders and we promote and support sustainable local alternatives.